US seeking to soothe France over NSA snooping

PARIS—U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says America is working to find the right balance between protecting peoples' security and privacy rights.

Kerry arrived in Paris Monday to anger over a reported NSA program that collected more than 70 million French telephone records over a month. Kerry said protecting people's security in today's world is a "very complicated, very challenging task," but was designed to protect U.S. citizens.

The French government summoned the U.S. ambassador for an explanation and promises that the snooping would stop.

Kerry called France "one of our oldest allies in the world." He cited ongoing discussions to soothe French concerns.

He was in Paris to attend a meeting of Arab diplomats over Mideast peace plans.